Animal healer

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Animal healer is a legally unprotected job title for people who treat animals commercially without being a veterinarian . Anyone can use the professional title “animal healer”, a certificate of competence is not required for this. In contrast to the naturopath , the activity as an animal naturopath is not subject to any licensing requirements . According to current jurisprudence, the professional title of animal health practitioner may only be used with the indication that no state permit is required to practice this profession. The activity as an animal health practitioner is restricted in the Federal Republic of Germany by a large number of generally applicable legal provisions ; this includes, in particular, pharmaceutical , animal disease , animal welfare and narcotic law regulations. The activities reserved exclusively for veterinarians according to these legal regulations are not allowed by animal healers. In Austria only veterinarians are authorized to treat animals. In Switzerland the legal situation is kantonal uneven.

history

Until the late 18th century , the so-called Thierarzney art was purely empirical . The force at the time as objectionable handling dead as with sick animals was initially in the hands of coachmen and grooms , shepherds , shepherds and forging , and later in those of cattle dealers , Roßkämmern and Roßtäuschern and finally at the dishonorable prestigious skinners , Wasen masters and Executioners . The steadily increasing animal losses through wars, parasitic diseases , reproductive disorders and especially animal diseases finally forced the establishment of independent technical schools for the training of veterinarians; initially for the needs of the cavalry . In the period that followed, the training of veterinarians was greatly expanded and based on scientific knowledge , whereby the acceptance of veterinarians on the part of the population was greatly improved and non-veterinary veterinarians were hardly in demand.

From the early 20th century , the concept of the so-called New German Medicine , which was supposed to bring together conventional medicine with outsider procedures known as “biological healing methods”, generated sustained criticism of purely scientific medicine and led to a renaissance of alternative medical and esoteric forms of therapy. In 1931, the first animal healer association was registered at the registry court in Heek under the name “Association of German Veterinary Medicine” . In the period that followed, further professional associations and numerous private providers of paid training courses were founded.

Field of activity

Animal healers mostly work in their own practice and treat both pets and food-producing animals . The treatment methods used are mainly to be assigned to alternative medicine . In addition to homeopathy , applications from the areas of phytotherapy , physical therapy , manual therapy , traditional Chinese medicine and dietetics are used, which from a scientific point of view can sometimes be considered useful and are also used by many veterinarians. Animal health practitioners also use proven ineffective therapies, such as the drainage procedures assigned to humoral pathology , Schüßler salts , Bach flower therapy and various other procedures assigned to regulation therapy . In addition, technology-assisted procedures that can be classified as ineffective, such as bioresonance therapy and magnetic field therapy, are largely used .

Legal situation in Germany

From a legal point of view, the animal health practitioner profession belongs neither to the healing professions nor to the health professions and is therefore subject to legal freedom. This free space is based on the fundamental right to professional freedom of Article 12 , paragraph 1 GG , which is only to protect the public interest regions can be (s. A. Pharmacy judgment ). In the field of veterinary treatment, the federal government only considers such restrictions to be necessary for veterinarians and not for animal healers, "because there is no public interest in a legal regulation for this relatively small professional group." However, the federal government does not know the number of practicing animal healers. The industry association for species- appropriate animal health estimates the number of animal health practitioners at 25,000 (as of 2014). In contrast, there were around 28,500 active and around 11,000 inactive veterinarians in the same year.

education

While the training of veterinarians is subject to numerous state requirements and students have to take various exams under state supervision before they can apply for state approval to practice the profession , the training offers for animal healers are not subject to any state requirements. Numerous institutions offer courses of the most varied of duration (from a weekend to several years) and quality, which are hardly comparable with one another, in which diplomas often referred to as “diplomas” are awarded. The state-not recognized qualifications awarded by private training providers harbor the risk of giving animal owners the wrong impression of supposed professionalism.

Professional practice

The professional practice of the animal healer moves within a difficult legal framework. For example, according to current jurisprudence, the professional title “animal healer” may only be used with the indication that no state permit is required to practice this profession. The fear of the Central Office for Combating Unfair Competition , recognized by the Munich Higher Regional Court as justified , that the use of the "imaginary name" animal healer was considered to be "misleading i. S. of § 3 UWG to be objectionable because the traffic draws the parallel to the profession of alternative practitioner and expects the fulfillment of the legal admission requirements for this profession ”, however, did not withstand the revision law review by the Federal Court of Justice . It is not one of the tasks of fair trading law to "protect traffic from any misconception."

There is no compulsory membership in an umbrella organization with sanctioning powers (analogous to the veterinary association ) for veterinary practitioners, so that there is no generally applicable professional code. Individual associations can adopt professional regulations according to their respective statutes, but these are not legally binding .

In his practical work, the animal healer is bound to comply with a large number of general legal norms . These include the following laws and regulations.

For this purpose, some regulations are set out in more detail.

Pharmaceutical law

The pharmaceutical law requires a notification of the type of activity as well as the operating site at the responsible veterinary office in order to participate in the drug trade . Animal health practitioners who acquire, dispense or use certain medicinal products for use in animals are subject to supervision by the competent authority (veterinary office) in accordance with Section 64 AMG. According to Section 66 AMG , they are obliged to tolerate the official measures and to support the people involved in surveillance .

Any traffic with narcotics , sera or vaccines is strictly prohibited . The use or dispensing of prescription and pharmacy-only drugs for food-producing animals (cattle, pigs, horses, sheep, goats, rabbits, poultry, bees and fish) is subject to extensive documentation requirements in accordance with the THAMNV. The use of prescription drugs is only allowed for animal health practitioners according to § 57a AMG if the drugs have been prescribed or dispensed by the veterinarian with whom the animals are being treated. In addition to the requirement of § 57a, according to § 58 AMG, animal owners and other persons who are not veterinarians may use prescription drugs or other drugs prescribed or purchased by the veterinarian for animals that are used for the production of food, subject to a measure by the competent authority according to § 58d paragraph 3 only apply after a veterinary treatment instruction for the case in question.

Acquisition, keeping in stock and the independent use of pharmacy-only medicines is also permitted for animals other than one's own. However, the animal health practitioner is not allowed to dispense to pet owners or to prescribe pharmacy-only drugs. The use of a medicinal product for a different animal species or indication than the animal species and areas of application specified in the labeling and the package insert of the medicinal product, as well as the dosage and duration of use specified there, is also prohibited for the veterinary practitioner - in contrast to the veterinarian .

Over-the-counter drugs can be purchased by anyone in retail stores or pharmacies. In accordance with Section 50 AMG, proof of the necessary specialist knowledge is to be provided by passing a state-regulated examination for the sale of over-the-counter drugs to pet owners . In accordance with Section 60 AMG, over-the-counter medicinal products may only be sold for use with ornamental fish, ornamental birds, songbirds, carrier pigeons, terrarium animals, small rodents, ferrets and rabbits that are not used for food production without proof of competence .

Animal health practitioners must provide evidence of the acquisition and whereabouts of the drugs used in accordance with Section 3 of the THAMNV. Proof of purchase, from which the type, quantity and date of purchase of the pharmaceuticals emerge, as well as evidence of the whereabouts, from which the type and quantity of the pharmaceuticals used, as well as the names and addresses of the respective animal owners, must be kept and stored for at least five years Request to be submitted to the veterinary office.

A certificate of competence in accordance with Section 50 AMG is also required for the application and delivery of plants used for therapeutic purposes and therefore subject to authorization for the treatment of food-producing animals. The same applies to the use of leeches .

Animal welfare law

According to § 1 sentence 2 TierSchG, nobody is allowed to inflict pain, suffering or harm on an animal without a reasonable reason. Treatments that prolong the suffering of animals with no realistic prospect of success or that otherwise inflict pain, suffering or harm on animals are therefore illegal . The animal healer - like the animal owner - is obliged to consult a veterinarian if the animal is sick or injured.

Painful interventions on vertebrates may only be carried out with anesthesia . Warm-blooded vertebrates (mammals, birds) as well as reptiles or amphibians may only be stunned by veterinarians. A local anesthetic is considered stunning in accordance with the Animal Welfare Act. Non-anesthetized, undoubtedly painful interventions such as castration , cropping , dehorning , bloodletting and the sewing of wounds on farm animals are seen by animal welfare schools as part of the job description.

In animal welfare matters , the animal healer is also subject to the duty to provide information and to cooperate with the responsible authorities.

Animal disease law

According to the Animal Health Act, animal health practitioners are also obliged to tolerate and participate in measures ordered by the official veterinarian and to provide information to the competent authority. If a notifiable animal disease breaks out in an animal population looked after by an animal health practitioner or if symptoms appear that indicate an outbreak of such an animal disease, the animal health practitioner is obliged to notify the veterinary office of this immediately.

Legal situation in other European countries

In Austria , the exercise of curative activities on animals by laypeople is prohibited under Section 12 of the Veterinary Act. However, in the framework of the auxiliary plate trade, there are “animal energetic specialists” who offer treatments for animals with Bach flowers , bioresonance , aromatherapy , animal kinesiology , colors , the laying on of hands and the like.

In Switzerland , the profession is regulated differently by canton . In some cantons the animal health practitioner is forbidden, in others an examination on the legal regulations must be taken, in still others a permit is required. There are two professional associations - the professional association of animal health practitioners and the animal health practitioners association .

In France , animals can only be treated by veterinarians. The only exceptions are for osteopathy and horse dental treatments, which can also be done by laypeople.

In the UK , therapists need permission from a veterinarian who has previously examined the animal. This approval is only to be refused if there are medical reasons against the veterinary treatment.

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Karl-Heinz Habermehl: Karl-Wilhelm Vix founder of academic veterinary training in Germany. Lecture in the Studium generale, summer semester 1970, “Famous Giessen Scholars - On the History of our University.” ( Full text online )
  2. ↑ a b c d e Heidi Kübler: Animal Heilpraktiker - Situation in Germany . In: Deutsches Tierärzteblatt 63 (2015), pp. 492–496. ( download PDF; 300 kB)
  3. ^ Entry of the THP at Fachverbände.de , accessed on April 7, 2019
  4. ↑ Professional profile of animal healer in the animal healer associations. ( Full text online )
  5. ↑ a b Colin Goldner: Beware, animal healers! "Alternative veterinary" diagnostic and treatment procedures.
  6. ↑ a b c Small inquiry about acquiring and using the professional title “animal healer”. (G-SIG: 13010976), BT-Drs. 13/2661 (small request) and BT-Drs. 13/2824 (answer), available from DIP under ID: 13-120973
  7. ↑ Small question about animal healers - a trade without federal regulations. (G-SIG: 16012183), BT-Drs. 16/5504 (small request) and BT-Drs. 16/5573 (answer), available from DIP under ID: 16-8080
  8. ↑ Medical professions in animal health - your company's answer to a request from the Bundestag Committee on Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection. Cover letter from Alexander Wurthmann on behalf of the trade association ArtgerechteTiergesundheit e. V. of May 5, 2014
  9. ↑ Veterinary statistics of the Federal Veterinary Association . ( PDF; 332 kB )
  10. ↑ Information on animal health practitioners from the Saxon State Chamber of Veterinarians, accessed on April 12, 2019
  11. ↑ Susanne Pichon: Animal Health Practitioner - Is it allowed what is not forbidden? In: pferde spiegel 19 (03), September 2016, pp. 128–130, Enke Verlag in Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart, New York doi: 10.1055 / s-0042-100575
  12. ^ Judgment of the Federal Court of Justice of April 22, 1999, Az. I ZR 108/97 ( full text online )
  13. ↑ Information on veterinary law for veterinarians (animal healers) from the association veterinary office JadeWeser.